Oracle reduced its global full-time workforce by roughly 21,000 employees, a 13% cut, from about 162,000 at the end of fiscal 2025 to 141,000 at the end of fiscal 2026 on May 31, 2026 [1, 2, 3]. The company disclosed in its June 22, 2026 filing that artificial intelligence (AI) adoption across its operations was a key factor in lowering headcount and may continue to impact staffing levels [1, 4, 5]. "We have adopted and deployed AI technology across our business that has led and may continue to lead to a reduced workforce," Oracle stated [1].
Other causes for the workforce reduction included management and product changes, performance issues, strategic shifts, and acquisitions, the company added [3]. Severance and restructuring costs soared to $1.84 billion in fiscal 2026, significantly above the $374 million recorded the previous year [1, 3].
As of May 2026, Oracle employed around 49,000 people in the US and 92,000 internationally [2, 6, 7]. Despite the cuts, Oracle is investing heavily in AI data centers and cloud infrastructure to compete with Amazon and Microsoft. It plans roughly $70 billion in capital expenditures and an additional $40 billion in financing during fiscal 2027, including $20 billion from stock issuance [1, 3].
Oracle's stock price fell 5% to $175.07 on June 22 after the layoffs were disclosed [1, 8]. The job cuts are part of a wider tech industry trend in 2026, with over 196 tech firms cutting nearly 120,000 jobs amid AI adoption [1, 3]. Oracle acknowledged the risk that large-scale layoffs could cause loss of technical talent, lower productivity, and affect future profitability [7, 5].
The 10-K annual report revealing these details was filed on June 22, followed by extensive media coverage on June 23, 2026 [1, 6, 9]. Oracle is moving forward with its planned spending and financing through fiscal 2027.
